RAURA ONE SHOTS
by kfizzlewizzle92
Summary: RAURA. Song-fics! Chapter three now up! Inspired by John Mayer. RAURA. One-Shot. Laura tells Ross that she's off to NYU.
1. Wasted

**A/N: First songfic! The song is Wasted by Tiesto and I'm OBSESSED. I would love to do more of these so if you guys have some song suggestions then just let me know! I'm cautious about this being a Raura fic because I know that this fandom is beautifully obsessive and I fear my life in terms of being misinformed. So in advance, anything that is wrong, I greatly apologize for. **

**I suggest listening to the song on repeat while you read this. Really pumps up the vibe. ;)**

**Love you all! R&R please!**

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_**I like us better when we're wasted**_

_**It makes it easier to fake it**_

"Ross!" She yelled his name over the deafening noise of the crowd when her eyes locked on the familiar platinum locks. She was only at this brazenly raucous party because during the whopping _five freaking minutes _that she had spent with him after his concert he'd told her to meet him here. She usually had nothing but kind words for her loveable cast mate, but ever since he started his tour with R5 he had been acting like a major jerk. Rarely responding to her texts, acting haughty and indifferent towards fans of their show, and just giving off an all around "I'm a rock star, you can't touch me" ambience. And don't even _get _her started on the length of his stupid hair.

That appearance needed to be gone before they started filming next season. As Ally's incarnate, she was pretty comfortable in saying that Ally Dawson would totally _not_ be about that hair.

Anyways, by the time that she had taken a photo with him (because one of them had to be conscience of their Raura/Auslly shippers) and he'd given her the address to what was fast shaking down to become a huge drug/sex/alcohol blowout, he had practically run off with his stupid band.

Well Rydel wasn't stupid. Or Riker. Or Rocky. Or Ellington.

Really, it was just Ross.

Feeling utterly humiliated about flying all the way out to NYC just to see him play and be the supportive costar that she sometimes (always) wished that he would be, she had immediately pushed past the half naked, grinding mosh pit towards the kitchen and by extension the shot glasses as soon as she had arrived at the swanky penthouse. She was completely uncomfortable in this environment since all around her people were throwing back beers, playing drinking games, and dancing in the cramped space. It was only worsened by the fact that she didn't know any of them and the Lynch's were nowhere to be seen.

Btw, Ellington was totally a Lynch in her mind.

She was four shots of too-expensive-tequila deep at this point, and the alcohol had definitely taken effect. Dancing overzealously with everyone within a four foot radius, she had all but forgotten about her temporary disdain for the blonde so when she had seen him for the first time all night, she didn't hesitate to yell out his name.

His head whipped towards her as though she was a lighthouse in the night and he immediately began to push towards her. "Laura!"

As soon as he was close enough, her arms were wrapped tightly around his neck and he responded by commissioning his arms to encase her waist. She let out a foreign squeal as he lifted her with ease and spun them both in a full circle. Had she been sober, she would've tried for some sort of retribution for him manhandling her without permission but as it stood she was more than content with his display of strength. Laughing freely, she let go of every thought and worry that had something to do with anything besides this moment.

As soon as her feet were back on the floor, his cool hand sheathed hers and he began walking towards the back of the house, giving her no choice in whether or not she wanted to follow. "Come on! We're going swimming!"

_**The only time we really talk**_

_**Is when our clothes are coming off**_

"Ross!" She whooped with laughter, struggling back against him. As soon as they had come out to the infinity edge pool that was already heavily preoccupied, he'd once more hoisted her from the ground. This time with a much less virtuous intent. His strong forearms pressed into her stomach and she desperately tried to pry him off with her fingertips, digging her heels into the ground as much as she could. "I don't have a bathing suit and my phones in my pocket and stop! You're being bully mean! Stop!"

She didn't even know what she was saying. Complex sentences were getting difficult to form at this point of intoxication. All she knew was that she loved her flip phone and wasn't entirely certain that she'd be able to buy another one if this one drowned. They may have stopped making them.

Like ten years ago.

She was pulled out of reflection about her phones lifespan when he immediately halted their struggle. Suspiciously fast, if she was being honest. She felt perfectly justified when her whole body tensed in anticipation of a sneak attack.

"Then take your clothes off. Just go in your bra and underwear." He stripped his shirt off, revealing a smooth expanse of tan skin accented by perfectly cut abs. She'd seen them plenty of times before but on this occasion a flood of heat immediately rushed through her stomach and to the apex of her legs. Had she been sober, this would've alarmed her. But as it stood, she sloppily threw her red strapless shirt and dark skinny jeans into a pile next to his, leaving her in a simple but matching black set of cheeksters and a strapless bra.

Missing the flash of hunger in his eyes when they raked over her body, she ran towards him with outstretched arms. She really felt herself deviously ninja enough that he wouldn't notice. However, when he started his descent into the cool depths of the pool, his arms flailed out and connected with her hips. She yowled immediately prior to being pulled down into the darkness with him.

They arose from the water in unison, sputtering and laughing aloud. Beach balls were being thrown over their heads as other party-goers splashed around them, and she was pretty sure she had seen Rydel and Ellington exchanging kisses in the corner of the large tank.

"So, I never thought I'd see the perfectly adorkable Laura Marano drunk off her ass. How'd that come about?" He sunk deeper into the three foot zone until water was barely lapping at his shoulders.

She hummed in agreement, swaying her upper body back and forth and watching her fingers trace smooth paths through the chopping waves caused by those around them. "Well sometimes perfectly adorkable Laura Marano needs to relieve stress too."

She was pretty sure it was acceptable to refer to yourself in third person when you're drunk. If not, she was too drunk to care.

Even through her intemperance she could read the surprise written all over his features at everything she had done thus far tonight. He probably hadn't expected her to even show up at this party, but she'd be damned if she'd flown all the way out here just to see him for five minutes.

"And what exactly stresses out Laura enough that she needs to drink her emotions away?" He floated a few inches closer to her as the party's noise level had somehow increased, which she didn't even think was doable at this point.

She took focus on the clear droplets running from his hair down his face and chest, as though in a race with each other. His blonde tendrils were sticking out at a disarray of angles, which gave him a childlike innocence that she hadn't seen in him since they were 15. "You."

_**I like us better when we're wasted**_

_**It makes it easier to say it**_

His gaze expressed shock with the widening of his brown orbs. "What? Me? Why?"

Her drunkenness was wearing off. She needed more liquor if she was going to continue to ignore the anger that had been boiling inside her when she'd first come to the party. Ignoring his question she turned to leave the pool, hastily running up the stairs to replant her feet on dry land. From the flustered splashing behind her she gathered that he was following but it only encouraged her to move faster. She didn't even stop to pick up her clothes on her way back to the kitchen, simply bending at the waist and shooting out her hand to grab them en route.

In a show of acute destiny, the glass door to the house slid open just as she reached it, allowing her to never slow her pace. She plucked a half full bottle of clear something or another from the counter and shoved through the throng of rebellions. She had no idea where she was going she just needed to get away from Ross right now. She didn't want to let out all of the frustrations that had been building up since they'd wrapped season 3. Not tonight at least. Tonight was a night of celebration for him. She found a hallway that was a lot less densely packed and followed it, clothes in one hand and bottle of alcohol in the other. Had she been sober she would've completely understood the implications of her appearance. As it stood, she was soaking wet and quickly sobering up and was therefore at ease with her scandal filled guise. She stumbled upon a door that was slightly ajar and pushed into it. A gasp escaped her lips as she saw a dark, toned and very naked back, with two very feminine legs wrapped around it. Before she had time to shut the door again, her wrist was being tugged on. Knowing exactly who it was, she struggled unsuccessfully against the hidden force. Unfortunately, her diet of primarily Go-Gurt did nothing to enhance her muscle tone and he easily maneuvered her into the empty room right across the hall. As soon as they were both inside, he closed and locked the door behind them. And to her the click of the latch sounded like the first shovel of dirt on her casket if she were to be buried alive. Now wasn't the right time to deal with this.

She opened the bottle. Bottoms up.

About five gulps in, Ross snapped to attention and ripped the bottle from her hand. "What the hell, Laura?"

"Oh, get your panties out of a bunch. I'm just having some fun. You do it all the time, remember?" Oh yeah. There's that buzz that she was missing. _Hey baby, how you doin'?_

"What are you talking about?" Ross sounded exasperated. She wasn't falling for it. If one of them were to be bitter, it'd be her.

"What am I talking about?" She laughed haughtily with her head thrown back in amusement. "Ross, you've gone bat shit crazy since we've stopped filming." He had that surprised look again. Probably at her swearing. He knew she only did it when she really needed to make a point. "You think everyone doesn't talk about how drugged up you look all the time? You and I used to talk daily. Then you leave to go on a tour and I barely get a congratulatory text on the day of my graduation. _My graduation, _Ross. Then not even a week later, I fly across the fucking country to see your concert and you hardly give me the time of day afterwards! What the hell?!"

_**Lay all your laundry on the bed**_

_**And then I'll lay in it instead**_

_**I like us better when we're wasted**_

_**Oh oh oh oh**_

His jaw dropped with everything she'd just said. She was internally beating herself up. She wasn't usually one to blow up on people. She was fun loving and dorky. Those were her _things. _But an hour with him and she had dropped more vulgar words than she had in the last three months, and was ready to join a freaking fight club to get rid of some of the tension that was knotted in her stomach.

Without responding, his t-shirt (which he must've picked up when he was chasing her) was thrown on the bed. Then he;d somehow gotten ahold of her clothes and was giving them the same treatment. She could do nothing but watch as the light fabric of her shirt fluttered onto the mattress. She was all too aware of their undressed state as they stood two feet apart, neither willing to look away from the other for even a moment.

She was fully expecting to get into an argument. What she wasn't expecting was for him to close the distance between them in a single step and clutch her hips tightly. The gasp that she originally let out was one of shock.

By the time that he had flung her onto the bed and stood above her though, it had quickly transformed to a gasp of desire.

She knew this wasn't how this should be going. They were supposed to be talking. Or drinking. Sex was not in the cards for them, _ever_. No matter how much she tried to convince herself of that though, her body had other plans. She pushed herself up on her elbows and allowed her eyes to linger on his exposed skin. From the broad width of his shoulders to the two lines of definition forming a perfect V that was barely hidden by his shorts, she was in complete shock at how truly sexy her costar was. And even more awestruck at the effect his appearance was having on her body. When her eyes caught his, she couldn't control the rush of wetness building in her underwear. His eyes had darkened to nearly black and were ablaze with desire. Desire that she wanted to fulfill. In all the dirtiest ways.

_**You are a glass half empty**_

_**Sipping my ocean dry**_

_**Emotionally spent me**_

_**Til none of our planets could align**_

_**But I could stand you one more night**_

All it took was a crook of her finger and he joined her on the massive bed. As he settled himself between her legs, it would've been hopeless for her to pretend that she didn't feel the hardness of his dick pressed against her thigh. Her toes curled in anticipation of everything that it could do to her. Her fingers found the defined muscle of his biceps on their own accord and she couldn't bite back a languid moan as her body betrayed her by pushing her hips up to meet his. She felt absolutely wanton.

He groaned at the contact and slid one arm under her back, snaking the other into the dark curls atop her head, "Laura, about what you said. I think we should-"

She cut him off with her lips in the first kiss that they'd shared without the curtain of their characters. "Ross, you bring out the worst in me. You literally suck my patience dry. But let's not talk about that tonight, okay? I don't want to talk about it tonight."

His blood was rushing south just from the chaste kiss that she had given him. "But Laura-"

"No." She interrupted him, again pressing her hips into his. Her arms slid across his shoulders to wrap around his neck. She used the position as leverage to pull the upper half of her body flush against him and align her mouth with his ear. "Fuck me, Ross. All I want tonight is for you to fuck me."

She felt more than heard the groan he let out. She reveled in the control she had over him and let her lips linger near the smooth expanse of his neck. Her tongue had lightly jutted out to trace a long, slow path towards his collarbone, when he'd decided he'd had enough.

Her breath hitched when, like lightning, his hands slid to her wrists and gripped them above her head. His lips were then on hers in a kiss that radiated hunger. Not even waiting for her permission, his tongue pursued admittance into her mouth and drug slowly across her bottom lip. His teeth then assaulted the same area when he bit down slightly too hard.

She felt like she was about to combust in arousal. She struggled against his hands but knew there was no way she was strong enough to break the hold. Unless he was somehow weakened.

Challenge accepted.

Wrapping her legs around his waist, she let her toes trail up the back of his calves, slowly and determinedly. This, in essence, pushed her knees up higher on his hips, giving him better access to her center. And he took full advantage of it. Like a bull released into an arena, Ross began to grind his body into hers, pressing down so hard that a sheet of paper wouldn't even make it between their bodies. Every time he slid up, she could feel the head of his dick brushing her clit through their clothes and it was driving her fucking insane.

"Clothes…mmm…" God his hips were magical. She wanted more of them. Preferably pushing into her. "Take off your clothes."

He didn't hesitate to obey her commands. Quickly sitting up, he forced his shorts and boxers down his legs, letting himself spring free from his constraints. Laura's eyes widened comically and she unconsciously licked her lips. His dick was so hard that it was pressing into his stomach and she was barely restraining the twitching of her fingers to get her hands on it. Or her mouth.

Smirking at her knowingly, his fingers quickly found their way into the waistband of her underwear and started their journey down her lithe legs. With every inch downward of the silky material, he used his mouth to kiss and nibble the newly exposed skin. And God was his mouth talented. Quickly losing patience with his teasing, she met him halfway by reaching behind her back to undo the clasp of her bra adding it to the growing pile of fabric on the floor. When they were both fully naked, they studied each others bodies, chests visibly heaving with want.

He was the first one to regain his senses. He shocked her out of her thorough examination of him when he roughly took hold of her thighs and flipped her onto her stomach.

The way her clit twitched at the thought of him behind her made her feel dirty in the best way possible. She wasn't a virgin but the only guy she'd been with had been very vanilla in bed. Meaning only missionary for the four months that they'd been sleeping together. Somehow she'd always known that Ross would be the most adventurous of her cast when it came to sex. She just never thought that she'd get to experience it first hand. She was more than content about this twist of fate.

He seized her hips once more, this time using them as leverage to pull her onto all fours. Positioning her hands and knees the way that he was urging her to, she could feel her wetness running down her thigh as she pressed her ass into him, pulling a purely animalistic sound from his throat. "Ross, please."

His hands slid up her sides, calloused fingers leaving a burning trail in their wake. The path led him to her breasts, where he teased her nipples relentlessly. Gently pulling them and rolling them between his fingers until her head fell back in ecstasy. With suave, he swept her hair to the side so that it fell over her right shoulder and she could feel the caramel ends brushing against her fingertips. When she felt the roughness of his lips along her back and shoulders, she couldn't help the instinct to push her hips back into him searching for the one thing she needed most right now.

Her ass brushed against his dick, and he promptly decided that foreplay time was over. Bending over her and using her thighs for leverage, he positioned himself at her entrance. Her tongue was held hostage between her teeth in anticipation at what was coming.

Then he pulled away.

_**You are a catch 22**_

_**Either way I miss out**_

_**All of the grief I'd give you**_

_**Is energy I can live without**_

_**But I could stand you one more night**_

She whimpered at the loss of contact and shot a wide-eyed look over her shoulder towards him that distinctly said, "What the hell are you doing? Get your ass back here."

He easily perceived the meaning behind her expression and returned one that said, "Sorry. I fucked up big time."

Having had enough of the nonverbal communication, she dropped her hips to sit on her knees and turned to look at him more fully. "What's wrong? What'd you do?"

He looked insulted as he also sat on his knees. He was trying his absolute hardest to keep his eyes above her neck but she was making it damn near impossible. "What?! What do you mean, what did _I_ do? What makes you think _I_ did something?!" He was _really_ trying to be upset, but the fact that he was still rock hard was making it incredibly difficult.

An incredulous look took over her face. "Are you kidding me? I don't know. Why would I think you did something? Oh, I know! Probably because your penis was practically halfway inside of my vagina before you stopped suddenly!" She moved to get off the bed and get dressed because really, how else do you handle that sort of situation? She'd never felt so rejected in her life. Like, couldn't he even pretend to finish? God knows, she'd done it with her last boyfriend on several occasions.

She didn't even know how to feel about it. On one hand, maybe it was a good thing that they'd stopped. It made facing him tomorrow a little less awkward. Not much, but slightly. On the other hand, she was now incredibly sexually frustrated and in desperate need of release. It was a real Catch 22.

"Laura!" He clutched her wrist desperately and pulled her back down to sit on the edge of the bed. "I…It's just that…I don't have protection."

He was understandably bewildered when her face lit up with a wide smile. He was so thrown off guard that she had no problem pushing him to his back and throwing her legs onto either side of his waist, effectively straddling him. She sighed candidly after maneuvering herself so that her clit was pressed into his stomach. "You're an idiot." She whispered, giving him grief. She leaned down to bite his lip and drug it back until it popped out from between her teeth. She smirked at the confusion adamant in his eyes before adding, "I'm on birth control."

This seemed to instantly reignite him as before she had even finished the sentence, he was lifting her onto his dick. She screamed out in surprise and ecstasy and dug her fingers into the muscles of his chest. She felt herself stretching to accommodate him and she briefly wondered why they'd never tried this before. He filled her _so good. _

She slowly began to lift herself using his chest as an anchor, before letting her hips fall back onto his. It was so sensual and hot but she soon realized that she didn't want this to be romantic.

She wanted it be raw, unadulterated fucking.

He was taken aback when she began to slam herself down onto his dick with much more authority. His hands snuck around to grip her ass and assist in the motions, as his upper body sprung up so that his mouth could latch onto her nipple. Moaning out his name, she dug her nails into his scalp, clutching him tighter to her breasts. The ceiling was the only thing in her direct vision when her eyes rolled to the back of her head and her hips began to move in sharp, choppy, motions. The slapping of their skin together was ringing clearly throughout the room and she momentarily thought it was the most erotic thing she'd ever heard.

She was pulled out of that thought by him flipping them over unexpectedly and establishing himself once again between her thighs, never leaving her tightness.

She could see him struggling with something and lightly pressed her hand to his cheek, "What is it? What's wrong?" This time when she said it her voice held much more compassion than earlier.

"Laura…" His face looked pain and she could feel the rigidity of his body, "I don't want to hurt you."

Lust shot through her blood stream when she realized that he was trying to hold himself back for her. The thought that she made him feel so carnal that he was worried enough to give her a disclaimer, had the opposite of his desired effect.

She wanted him to _fucking ravish her. _

Her fingers found their way to the small of his back and she dug her nails in. Her thighs squeezed him tighter and she bit the curve of his shoulder roughly. Chocolate eyes met chocolate eyes when, her voice dripping with determination she said, "Don't hold back."

The moment that he let go was like seeing the walls to a dam break. His eyes flared fervor greed and when he gripped the headboard behind them, her body quivered in need.

"Fuck, Ross!" Her voice was reaching ranges that she never knew it could as he jackhammered into her. She had no time to assist him in his motions because he was so purposeful and tenacious that every time she raised her hips it just threw off his rhythm.

"Laura…Laura…" he began muttering as his pace impossibly increased. She could tell he was close, hell she was surprised that she was still holding on. The headboard was banging into the wall behind them with fervor. Had she been sober, she would've been appalled by the fact that others could know what they were doing in this secluded corner of the party. As it stood, she found the thought of others envying their current actions very erogenous.

When one of his hands left the headboard to massage her clit, she arched off the bed like a bow and she felt her orgasm consume her. Her walls squeezed him tightly and irregularly, as he continued to slam into her. When he let go, she felt the warmth of his release spurting into her in long ropes. Her body responded to the sensation by making her cum again.

He collapsed onto her, completely spent. Their heavy breaths resounded through the room as the aftermath of what had just happened sunk into them both. His head lay on her chest, while her fingers gently brushed through his hair. If it had been messy before at this point it was altogether chaotic from the amount of pull she'd had on it. Quite literally. She could already feel the bruises from his hands forming on her hips and thighs but didn't even mind because it was totally worth it. He turned his head slightly so that his lips pressed into the side of her breast and his hand searched aimlessly for one of hers so that he could interlock their fingers. "Laura. We're going to need to talk about everything. " He softly stated, letting his thumb trace along hers.

She hummed in agreement, "I know. But tomorrow." She urged his head up so that she could look into his eyes. When he nodded at her, small hands framed his cheeks and her lips slid across his languidly.

"Ross Lynch. I do believe that I like us better when we're wasted."


	2. Shake It Off

**A/N: Okay. I have like a million songfics that I need to do. But because of some Twitter drama that occurred today, this one is priority numero uno. For those who don't know, there were a few people on Twitter saying some very ugly things about our Austin & Ally darling, Laura Marano. Coincidentally enough, just yesterday T-Swizzle released a song about shaking off the haters. You draw the conclusions. **

**This one is for Ana for being the only one to defend me against the R5ers on Twitter today. I love you. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own A&A, Ross or Laura, R5 or Taylor Swifts lyrics.**

"Laura! What the fuck?!" Ross exclaimed rushing towards her the moment she walked into the green room backstage at R5's latest concert.

She stood in the doorway wide-eyed. Like for real, Dude? She hadn't seen him in a month and that was how he greeted her? She just came out to have a good time and honestly she was feeling so attacked right now.

Ha. Ha ha.

She quirked a perfectly shaped eyebrow at him and raised her hands in mock surrender. "Hello, Ross. Nice to see you too. I've been great, thanks for asking. How have you been?"

He didn't respond and instead pulled his phone from his back pocket and began to scroll furiously, through what she wasn't certain. Until he held the device out in front of him and she saw the familiar blue bars of a Tweet.

Oh. That.

Sighing, she didn't even have to read the Tweet to know what it said. She had already read it. Over and over again.

_Honestly if Laura died, I wouldn't mind._

It was on a constant loop in her head, like that one song that you only knew six words to but could never remember the title of. It wasn't like she wasn't used to it. She always received a ton of hate over her (nonexistent) love affair with Ross. Simply because they worked on the show together, all of his fan girls assumed that one or both of them wanted to be more than friends with the other. She wouldn't go as far as to say that she'd never thought about it. But she didn't know how she'd be able to deal with an even more copious amount of violent responses to their relationship. Plus this was the first time in a long time that the hate hadn't been through a DM.

Meaning that everyone could see it.

Meaning that Ross could see it.

She had desperately hoped he wouldn't. He was protective of her to a fault and she was certain that if he saw it he'd fly off the handle. Judging by the movement in his jaw that was clearly an angry twitch, he seemed to be barely holding on.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Oh. Oh no. He sounded so sad.

Like a…a…a sad little puppy. She just wanted to hold her sad little puppy Ross and make everything better.

_Boo you, Laura. Boo you._

She closed the two feet between them and took his hands in her own, rubbing her thumb across his knuckles and painting a reassuring smile onto her face. "Hey? I'm alright. I'm good. There were a ton of Austin & Ally fans _and_ R5 fans who jumped to my defense. Don't worry about it."

"And the R5 family?" His tone implied that he was asking a question but by his face she could tell that he already knew the answer.

"How much did you read, Ross?" She angled her head slightly to the side, scrutinizing his features to see how deep his anger went.

Letting out a huff of breath he turned away from her and ran a hand through his disheveled hair.

His stage hair, as she liked to call it.

The hair that perfectly complimented the beat up tee, worn down jeans, and scuffed converse to create his I Don't Give a Fuck look.

But hey. It worked for him.

Obviously, since all of his wannabe Rossian lovers were sending her hate mail all the time.

"I read enough. How are you not angry?" The timbre of his voice slightly increased as he asked the question and his hands flew down into the WTF position.

You know. The WTF position. It's a real thing. Google it.

She let her eyes fall to the ground before she admitted something to him that she hadn't yet admitted to herself, "I am."

"Well then what are you going to do about it, Laur?" he said in exasperation.

It hit her like a ton of bricks. It honestly did. She knew what she needed to do. Pulling her shoulders back in confidence, her voice clearly resonated through the room as she spoke. "Where's the rest of the band? I have an idea."

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"Alright, everybody!" He yelled into his mic over the deafening roar of thousands of committed fans. They had just wrapped their set list, he was soaked through with sweat and they were scheduled to do an encore. Tonight however, he and his band mates had decided to switch it up.

"This is the part in the evening where my siblings and I, Ratliff included, would usually play an Austin & Ally song." The increased decibel level of the arena at the mention of the Disney show that he shared with Laura had him wondering just _how many_ people in his R5 family despised her. Because it seemed like all of these people were super stoked. "But I think we all decided that tonight would be a good night to switch things up. I have a very good _friend _here tonight. Some of you may know her? Laura Marano?"

It sounded like thunder was bouncing off the walls at the mention of her name.

"Well she had an incident today where some people said some not so nice things to her and I think she has some feelings that she needs to express. Come on out here, Laura!"

She jogged out into the middle of the stage with a wide smile on her face. Rocky had previously placed a mic there for her and she took hold of it to address the crowd. He tried his hardest to tear his eyes from her but she was donning some ridiculously short denim and a too revealing crop top, hidden only by a long cardigan. Which wasn't exactly her usual style.

Not that he was complaining.

He loved himself some rebellious Laura.

As a friend, of course.

"Hey, everyone!" Her voice was the perfect pitch to carry throughout the stadium. Her voice was actually the perfect everything if he was being honest. "Gah, you guys are so awesome! And speaking of awesome! This ridiculously talented band behind me, am I right?!" She threw an arm back in their direction and nodded vigorously to show her support of them. The crowd roared.

"Well, as some of you may know. Good ol' T Swizzle released a new song yesterday. Have you heard it? Yeah? It's great, right? Like Woo Hoo! Go Tay! Ya know?" His eyes almost bugged out of his head when she began to pull the cardigan off, exposing her shoulders and back. She threw it to the side of the stage, near a speaker before returning to the mic to address the audience once more, "Well, I'm gonna sing it."

He grinned triumphantly as he heard their fans scream louder than they had thus far into the night.

Because if anyone deserved it, it was her.

She shot Ratliff a dazzling smile as a cue to start playing, so he counted the rest of the band in.

His fingers found the smooth metal of his guitar strings with ease, which allowed him to simultaneously play and watch her. And as her hips swayed back and forth to the opening chords, he was immensely grateful that he could.

"_**I stay out too late**_

_**Got nothing in my brain**_

_**That's what people say.**_

_**Mmm-mmm**_

_**That's what people say**_

_** Mmm-mmm"**_

She leaned towards the audience and nodded her head with a look of conviction during the "mmm-mmms" and he could practically see the indignation that she had been holding onto seeping out of her pores.

"**I go on too many dates**

**But I can't make 'em stay**

**At least that's what people say**

**Mmm-mmm**

**That's what people say**

**Mmm-mmm"**

She chuckled humorlessly after the line about her going on too many dates, and he knew it was because she rarely ever did. He had never understand the plethora of "Slut" or "Whore" insults targeted towards her from some of his fans, because her motivation and ambition to be the best person that she could be far outweighed her desire to find a boyfriend or sleep around. That was why she had graduated from a _real _high school with a 4.2 GPA, was an ambassador for UNICEF, worked on multiple movies this year along with Austin & Ally, and had teamed up with a vegetable brand to target healthy eating towards kids. Laura was her own woman.

"_**But I just keep on cruising**_

_**Can't stop, won't stop moving**_

_**It's like I got this music**_

_**In my mind singing it's gonna be alright"**_

She had begun to saunter across the stage. Boldness flying off of her in sparks. He felt beyond lucky that he was given the opportunity to see her in this state, where she gets to perform _as _Laura. Circumstances like these were few and far between, and it appeared as though the stars had aligned for him tonight.

"_**'Cause the players gonna play, play, play, play, play**_

_**And the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate**_

_**I'm just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake**_

_**Shake it off, shake it off"**_

Fun fact that not a lot of people know about Laura. She isn't a terrible dancer. She'd taken tap for a good portion of her life and could keep a beat just as much as any other well respecting teenage girl. And that was being evidenced right now. By the way she was shaking her hips. And trust him when he said that she was _shaking her hips. _

"_**Heartbreakers gonna break, break, break, break, break**_

_**And the fakers gonna fake, fake, fake, fake, fake**_

_**Baby I'm just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake**_

_**Shake it off, shake it off"**_

In an impressive display of stealth she'd somehow manage to slip her newly purchased iPhone out of her pocket and open the Twitter home page. As she sung about fakers faking, she held the phone out for the spectators to see and waved it side to side to the beat of the music. Shocked by the bluntness of the maneuver, Ross made eye contact with Rydel who was grinning like a proud mama bear. It would appear as though she'd finally turned her sweet, little Laura to the dark side. Well at least the _darker_ side. Laura Marano would never be anything but sweet.

"_**Hey, hey, hey**_

_**Just think while you've been getting down and out about me being a liar and a dirty, dirty cheat of the world,**_

_**You could've been getting down to this sick beat"**_

Laura seamlessly cut into the bridge just as they had arranged it ten minutes prior to the concert starting. He'd wanted her to sing the whole song but she'd complained about not wanting to eat up too much of the bands time because (and he quoted) "they paid to see R5 and not Laura Marano." But according to the way they were cheering wildly at her improvised lyrics, he was sure that she could've done a whole set and the audience would've been more than okay with it.

"_**My ex-man brought his new girlfriend**_

_**She's like "oh my god",**_

_**I'm just gonna shake"**_

She had begun skipping towards him, and as she stood directly to his left she gestured towards his guitar at the "new girlfriend" part. Laughter tore through him as he continued to play. It had been an inside joke with the cast for as long as he could remember that his instruments were his one true love. His guitar had been his "girlfriend" since the moment they noticed that it was always with him. When she was cued to sing "I'm just gonna shake" her hips sharply thrust left and right to the beat and she turned her head towards him. The wicked gleam in her eye was distinctly apparent but he had no idea why it was there.

"_**And to the fella over there with the hella good hair**_

_**Won't you come on over baby, we can shake, shake, shake"**_

Her hand flew into his hair and he had no time to react before she was pushing her petite body into his and pulling him down for a kiss. Distantly he heard Rydel picking up the lyrics where she'd left off, the onlookers erupting in encouragement, and his own mind telling him that Disney would kill them for this. He didn't pay a scrap of attention to any of it.

Swinging his guitar to his back, he slid his arms around her waist and lifted her to deepen the kiss. It was as though something clicked in his chest. Something that said, "You may not have known you were missing anything but now you've found it and thank fucking God". Her body was radiating heat from the high of performing and as one hand slid up to the nape of her neck, he could feel the dampness of her hair from the light sheen of sweat coating her skin.

Small fingers clutched his shoulders in desperation, for what neither of them knew. Granting his tongue access to her mouth, she felt like she couldn't get close enough to him and had begun to lift her legs to wrap around his waist until she remembered their surroundings.

They were at a concert.

With 2500 spectators.

Sharing their first kiss.

Fearing of what she would do if they didn't stop now she slowly broke their kiss. Leaving her eyes closed until he set her back on the ground. "Ross, I didn't mean to-"

He cut her off with a quick kiss and smiled encouragingly, pointing towards the arena behind her.

Scared to death of what she would see, she slowly looked back over her shoulder and was met with a barrage of reassuring screams, fans with tears of joy streaming down their faces, and the flashing of cameras.

Completely ecstatic over the overwhelmingly amount of support she was receiving from the audience, she took Ross' hand and finished out the song.

"_**Shake it off, Shake it off**_

_**Shake it off, Shake it off"**_

At she ended the vocals and the band closed out the instruments, a singular tear left her eye. This experience had opened her eyes to the fact that no matter how many people had terrible, hurtful things to say about her, she'd always have a support system that far exceeded the worst that they could do.

So she was going to continue working on Austin & Ally, and recording her music, and all around being the best that she could be.

And maybe after tonight she'd have herself a handsome blonde to do it all with.


	3. Slow Dancing in a Burning Room

_**It's not a silly little moment,**_

_**It's not the storm before the calm.**_

_**This is the deep and dying breath of**_

_**This love that we've been working on.**_

I can't remember a time before us. Never have we been just Ross and just Laura. Ever since that first day we were asked to read together it's been _Ross and Laura_. Collectively. Even way back when I was lanky and my voice was three octaves higher. And she was awkward, with her face rounded out by the baby fat that she'd yet to fully lose. I remember thinking even then that she was so beautiful.

Always so fucking beautiful.

The day our relationship had taken a sharp turn past friendship and into so much more was easily one of the best days of my life. It wasn't planned. It wasn't talked about. It was just a kiss.

Yet so much more than just a kiss.

And over the past two years we've been building a foundation on that kiss. A foundation that was supposed to be able to weather any storm, no matter how tumultuous it may be.

So as she stood there telling me that she was leaving for New York in a month, I wondered what the hell kind of tempest that was because I wasn't sure of how we were supposed to get through it.

I wasn't even sure that we could.

And I told her that.

And she unleashed the kind of storm that I thought maybe I _could _handle.

She began yelling at me. About how important this was to her. I thought _I _was important to her, I said. She was silent for a moment.

Then she started reminding me of my schedule and the constraints it put on our relationship. I was always touring, or filming on location. It'd been hard on her. Hard on _us. _She was yelling again.

Still taking my breath away with her beauty.

_**Can't seem to hold you like I want to**_

_**So I can feel you in my arms.**_

_**Nobody's gonna come and save you,**_

_**We pulled too many false alarms.**_

I didn't want to fight anymore. Her voice wasn't fit for yelling. It was fit for singing beautiful music and calling the children we would one day have in for dinner.

I just wanted to make sure that she stayed by my side forever.

When I pulled her to my chest, the weight of her in my arms, it was different. It wasn't the relaxing embrace that I'd grown so accustomed to, with her ear pressed against the heart that she'd always caused to speed up, while I traced light circles on the perfectly smooth skin of her back.

It was desperate.

She was clutching the leather of my jacket with a grip that I'd never felt from her before. The damp remnants of her tears were felt clearly on my shirt but I didn't…couldn't…acknowledge them because then it would make it real and all I wanted was to go back to yesterday.

Yesterday before New York was ripping my heart from my chest.

I remember Rydel came out onto the back porch, seemingly sensing the heartbreak of both her brother and best friend. I just shook my head slowly and she got the message, going back inside.

It was too late. That's what my headshake meant.

We all knew that the foundation was crumbling.

_**We're going down,**_

_**And you can see it too.**_

_**We're going down,**_

_**And you know that we're doomed.**_

_**My dear,**_

_**We're slow dancing in a burning room.**_

After awhile she tried to pull away but I couldn't let go. I always told her I would never let go. I promised.

She struggled against my grip and in my mind I knew that I shouldn't be holding her captive but sometimes my heart took control of my head.

Always when it came to her.

Then three words escaped her mouth. It wasn't the three words I longed for from her. It was three that I had hoped I'd never hear.

Let go, Ross.

And I knew that was it.

_**I was the one you always dreamed of,**_

_**You were the one I tried to draw.**_

_**How dare you say it's nothing to me?**_

_**Baby, you're the only light I ever saw.**_

When I was touring we would stay up all night on the phone. There were countless sunrises peeking over the sprawling greenery that my tour bus sped through, soundtracked by the sweetest sound in the world.

Her voice.

Every song I sang, every song I wrote, had a little piece of her in it. She had always been my muse. The one person that brought my deepest, most sincere thoughts to life. People said I was closed off, or that I seemed like a jerk but she always defended me. He's a hopeless romantic, she'd tell them.

Only for her I was.

Why then was she telling me that I didn't care as much as she did, that our love meant nothing to me.

When she knew it was my everything.

_**I'll make the most of all the sadness,**_

_**You'll be a bitch because you can.**_

_**You try to hit me just to hurt me**_

_**So you leave me feeling dirty**_

_**Because you can't understand.**_

I told her I'd write about it. The song about the girl who broke my heart and that everyone would know it was her.

Everyone thought everything I did was her.

Because it was.

She didn't like the idea of bringing my music into this catastrophe. Before she had turned to run from my yard she'd told me. Said that our relationship had only been a publicity thing for me all along.

She didn't truly mean it.

It was a defense mechanism for her.

I knew that because I knew her.

Everything about her.

Yet she didn't know me. Because if she had, she'd have known that I never wanted any of this.

And that I would have waited for her until my dying breath.

_**We're going down,**_

_**And you can see it too.**_

_**We're going down,**_

_**And you know that we're doomed.**_

_**My dear,**_

_**We're slow dancing in a burning room.**_

Now here I stand in New York. Heart beating a furious rhythm against my chest.

It's cold, as it often is in January. Snow piles around me in majestic, white hills.

Today would've been our anniversary.

I'm across the street from her dorm. Gazing at her from afar while the soft gleam of the falling snow brings back the memories of my angel.

I didn't tell her I was coming.

That may be why her arms are wrapped around someone else.

And her lips too.

And here I stand.

Alone in my burning room.


End file.
